Hi everyone.

New to domaining so I was wondering if anyone could spare some tips on how to get started, why to do and what not to do? If you know any resources you could point me to, that'll be great as well.

Thanks!

here is a great starting point http://www.namenewbie.com/

Do not buy hyphenated domains unless they're for very high traffic terms and you plan to develop them.

Stay on top of the news.

Register the most generic domains possible. Before you register a domain, think about whether or not the person you want to sell it to could just choose another name that's just as good and reg is for $8.

I found four useful resources you can check out.

domainnamewire.com
dnjournal.com
dailydomainer.com
domainrookie.com

Cheers

Thanks everyone! Looks like there's a lot of reading I need to catch up on.

Now if only I could just download everything into my brain.


Another slightly sensitive question.. how much time do you usually spend on domaining every day and how much do you roughly earn? Not looking for any exact figures, just rough ranges would be good enough.

Just want to gauge if the returns are actually worth the time invested.

Originally Posted by Doshy

Thanks everyone! Looks like there's a lot of reading I need to catch up on.

Now if only I could just download everything into my brain.


Another slightly sensitive question.. how much time do you usually spend on domaining every day and how much do you roughly earn? Not looking for any exact figures, just rough ranges would be good enough.

Just want to gauge if the returns are actually worth the time invested.

Chances are you are not going to get rich from domaining. The big players out there have sophisticated computer systems that do their domain kiting for them, and entire staffs of employees.

It's also difficult if you are not entering the game with a 5-6 figure budget.

I spend next to no time on domaining, but I'm still in the black. I've owned more duds than good domains, but the good ones have more than paid for the rest.

Look at it like this:

You pay $9 for a domain and park it for free.

That domain must make an average of $0.75/mo to pay for itself.

Let's say it makes $1.75/mo. That's $1 profit each month. Huge take, huh?

But what if you own 10,000 domains like this?

The question is, for how long will they make that profit? When will people lose interest and stop typing them in? IMHO, for most people, if you're not already deep in domaining, spend your time looking for the NEXT big thing. I spend more time evaluating stocks than I do evaluating domains and it pays 10x what I make in domaining.

Big tip! DON'T get emotionally attached to your domains!!!!
This happens to a lot of new domainers. They reg. "thisisthebestdomain.info" and then they post it for some appraisals and then for sale for $10k and get upset when someone offers them $100.
Fast forward 2 years and you still own the crappy name and now cant even get $5 for it.

Concentrate on a niche. I bought a name for $900 and after 2-3 years had an offer of just under $100k for it. It is a domain targeted to a particular niche.

Dont start off spending a ton of $$$ unless you have someone mentoring you. I know some guys with some $$ who went out and bought up a bunch of domains. They didnt spend a ton but in the low/mid $xx,xxx range. They overpaid for a lot of them and although there are a couple of domains which they may be able to sell to recoup their investment they made some really bad choices.

Decide how you want to earn. Do you want to make quick scores? Buying/registering a domain for $6-20 and turning it over quickly for $20-$50?
Would you rather invest in some domains and keep them for a year or 2 or 3?
Or are you thinking about acquiring names with traffic and parking them?

The oldest domain forum: dnforum.com is probably the best domain forum online.
Namepros.com is another and is very active.

Earnings wise I have done very well domaining. A lot of my success is based on domains I have acquired for development.
In terms of yearly revenue it is in the $xx,xxx range each year.

Last don't hold names that suck! Sorry to be blunt but trying to drive this point home! I am as guily of this as anyone else but have learned my lesson. When you have hundreds/thousands of domains scrutinize your portfolio and cut your losses. Don't renew domains year after year which you were unable to sell as there is a reason they arent selling.

Its a pretty fun industry so good luck and enjoy.